Dash lamp



- Nov. 30 1926.

C. LANG ET AL DASH LAMP File y 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet/i Nov. 30 1926.

Currn'fer L 7? darnue/ Gall er tit:

Patented Nov. 30, 1926.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CURRIER LANG, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, AND SAMUEL H. CROKER, OF WINDSOR, ONTARIO, CANADA, ASSIGNORS T CANADIAN LAMP AND STAMPING COMPANY, OIE FORD CITY, ONTA R IO, A CORPORATION OF CANADA.

DASH LAMP.

Application filed May 21,

Our invention relates to electric lamps and in its general objects to an inexpensive and easily attached lamp adapted to be mounted on the instrument board (or clashboard) or an automobile and designed for limiting the emitted rays from a lamp-bulb to predetermined directions. It also aims to provide a lamp for this purpose whichaside from the standard lamp-bulb employed in it can be manufactured almost entirely by punch press operations, and one which includes a switch adapted for easy operation even by a heavily gloved hand. i

In some of its more particular aspect-s, our invention provides a lamp having its body supported by a single tubular bolt through which the ungrounded wire extends, and having its casing designed to engage adjacent parts of an instrument board or the like to prevent rotation of the entire lamp about the single supporting bolt'and to prevent the emitting of light adjacent to the board. i

In some further aspects, our invention provides a novel lamp-bulb holder adapted to be cheaply forn'ied from a single piece of sheet metal, provides a novel switching arrangen'ient suitable for use with a lamp-bulb holder, and provides simple means for insulating the conducting parts associated with a switching socket or lamp-bulb holder. Moreover, our invention provides a novel form of ligh -controlling casing for such a lampbulb holder and switch.

Still further and also more detailed objects will appear from the following specification and from the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is an elevation of a standard type of combination lock-switch and ammeter panel, together with a portion of an automobile dashboard on which this is mounted, showing a dash lamp of our invention attached to the same.

2 is a side elevation of the same panel and lamp, with the forwardly projecting parts of the lock-switch omitted and with the dashboard indicated in dotted lines.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section taken through the casing of the lamp along the line 3 3 oi Fig. 1.

1926. Serial No. 110,778.

Fig. 4 is a correspondingly enlarged plan view of the same dash lamp with the casing detached.

Fig. 5 is a similarly enlarged central and vertical section through the lamp, instrument panel and dashboard, taken along the line 55 of Figs. 1 or 4.

Fig. 6 is a vertical transverse section, taken along the line 6-6 of Fig. 4, with the slidably mounted switching member in its on position. a

Fig. 7 is a section similar to Fig. 6 but showing-the switching member in its oil position.

Fig. 8 is a plan of the sheet metal blank from which the switch casing and lamp-bulb holder is formed.

Fig. 9 is a perspective view showing this blank as folded to afford the switch casing and the lamp-bulb holder.

Fig. 10 is a vertical section taken through the lamp-bulb holder along the line 10-10 of Fig. 9.

In the drawings, the numeral 1 in Fig. 1

indicates a sheet metal instrument board or panel as attached to the dashboard 2 of an automobile for supporting both a locking switch 3 (which controls the ignition circuit of the vehicle) and an ammeter 4. Such instrument panels are commonly secured to the dashboards by a pair of bolts, and the head 5 of the lower bolt is shown in Fig. 1 in its usual position. The panel usually is tapered rearwardly adjacent to the pertoration for each bolt to afford a socket 6 for the usual tapering bolt head, and the panel also is customarily provided with a peripheral ornamental flange 7.

In adapting the lamp of our invention to panels with such formations, we secure the body member of the lamp to a bolt shank which has an integral tapering collar adapted to lit the same tapering socket 6, this bolt shank being tubular and having the insulated circuit wire 10 extending through it while the other circuit wire 11 is grounded t-hrough the metal of the dashboard according to the usual custom as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 5.

For the body member of our lamp-which body member forms a combination switch casing and lamp-bulb holderwe preferably start with a substantially H-shaped sheet metal blank formed as shown in Fig. 8. One

shank of this blank has its middle portion 13 provided with a perforation through which the forward portion of the tubular bolt shank afterwards extends, while its upper and lower wing portions (14 and 15) are provided with slots (16, 17) through which the slidable switching member '18 of the completed lamp extends.

The companion shank of the original blank has its medial partl9 provided with a perforation 20 slidably fittlng the usual metal shell 21 on astandard lamp-bulb, and has rectangular wings 22 and 23 of equal size extending respectively upward and downward from this medial ,part 19. 7 Each of these wings has an extension v(24, 25) provided at its outer horizontal edge with an arcuate recess 26 which preferably is of a radius corresponding to the outside diameter of the lamp-bulb "shell 21. The perforation 20 has diametrically opposite enlargements 27 of ample size so that the usual laterally projecting pins 28 on the lamp-bulb can slip through them; and the arcuate recesses 26 each are less than a semicircle, so as to leave gaps 31 between the end portions of the two recessed edges when the blank is folded (as in Fig.9) to have the said companion shank of the original blank form 'a lamp-bulb holder.

hen the blank is thus folded, the part 13 forms a vertical casing back, the parts 14 and 15 form side wings, and the original cross-bar 29 of the H-shaped blank forms a casing bottom of which the perforated part 19 is an extension. The wings 22 and 23 form risers spacing the arcuately recessed extensions 24 and 25 from the part 19, and the recesses 26 are disposedin axialalinement with the perforation 20. The base of a standard lamp-bulb can then be slid through the perforation 20 from below and through the space between the .arcuate recesses 26, after which the lamp-bulb is rotated so as to have its projecting pins 28 rest on the tops of the parts 24 and 25. Each of the parts 24 and 25 desirably has a riser finger 30 formed on itadjacent to one of the said gaps, so as to prevent the lamp-bulb from being accidentally rotated to alinethe pins 28 again with the gaps 31.

To carry the current from the insulated wire 10 to the axial terminal 32 of the lamp bulb, we provide a contact member which has a resilient contact arm 33 extending above the said bulb terminal, this arm being formed so that its: resiliency tendsjto hold the said arm vertically spaced fromthe bulb terminal 32. The contact member also includes a base arm 34 which extends parallel and adjacent to the back 13 of the casing or body member of our lamp. This base arm 34 has a perforation housing an insulating washer through the bore of which the forward part of the tubular bolt shank 8 extends, and the base arm is insulated from the back 13 by a perforated vertical arm 36 of an insulating member which has a flexible tongue 37 extending above the resilient contact arm 33 of the contact mem her. A second insulating washer 38 engages the forward face of the base arm 34an'd also has the bolt shank 8 extending through it. The forwardly projecting end of the bolt shank 8 is then-flared out so as to clamp the parts 36, 34 and 38 jointly against the casing back 13 into a rigid assembly, and the forward end of the wire 10 is secured to the contact member.

Extending slidably across the said casing and through the slots 16 and 17 is a switch bar 18 which is longer than the width of the casing and which has its end (39 40) bent fiatwise at right angles to the general plane of the bar to afiord stops adapted respectively to engage the lateral walls of the cowl or casing 42 of the lamp. The main portion of this bar has a downwardly direc ted hump 41 formed in it; so that when the bar isslid into the position shown in Fig. 6, this hump depresses theinsulating tongue 37 and causes the latter to hex the resilient contact arm 33 into forcible engagement withtheaxial lamp-bulb termi- I nal 32, thereby switching the lamp on. However, the insulating tongue 37 is considerablynarrower than the interior width 2-23:-

of the casing, so that this hump will be disposed laterally beyond the tongue when the switch bar is slid to the position of Fig. 7, thereby permitting the resiliency of the contact arm 33 to raise the latter out of engage ment with the said bulb terminal 32 so as to switch the lamp off. To increase the raising movement of the contacting portion of this contact arm we desirably place the switch bar near the connection of the con i .1

tact arm to the base arm 34 of the contact member, and we may alsoprovide a second hump 41 in the switch bar as shown in Figs. 6 and 7. I

To provide the desired limitation for the directions of the light, we preferably provide a casing or cowl 42 which partially hoods the bulb 43 of the lamp-bulb and which also forms a cover for the'switch casing. As here illustrated, this casing is a r-earwardly open elbow-shaped stamping having in its rear portion lateral walls 42 and 42 respectively engaging the outer faces of the lateral switch casing or cowl walls 15 and 14, each of these walls having a rearwardly open slot 44 through which the switch bar 18 extends. The casing also has as its forward portion a downwardly extending part 42 which partially conceals the lamp-bulb.

Where our dash lamp is to be mounted on a peripherally flanged instrument board, as in the present instance, we desirably provide the rear end oi the casing with a curved edge 47 fitting the flange 7 and reaching to the dashboard 45, as shown in Fig. 2. We also desirably provide the casing with webs 46 underhanging the bottom 12 of the switch casing (as shown in Fig. 6) so that these webs will cooperate with the engagement of the switch bar of the casing slots 44 in holding the casing 42 in a fixed position on the switch casing. By doing this and by forming the casing 4-2 so that it.

snugly fits the switch casing, we eliminate the need of any auxiliary fastening member.

l Vhen the lamp-bulb is being inserted from below, as heretofore described, the reduced diameter of the recesses 26 will cause the base of the bulb to spread the extensions 2% and slightly apart during the insertion of the bulb, and the resiliency of the metal of which the body member is formed will cause these recessed parts to grip the lampbulb base tightly. Hence we avoid having the lampbulb raised accidentally by a jarring of the vehicle, and we require no auxiliary means for holding the lamp-bulb in its normal position.

WVith our dash lamp thus arranged, all parts except the standard lamp-bulb, the bolt and the nutare easily manufactured by simple punch-press operations, one end (39 or 4-0) of the switch bar being bent downward after this bar has been slid through the guide slots 16. The single operation of flaring the rear end of the bolt shank secures all parts to each other in operative relation, with the exception of the cowl 4-2 which is formed so as to grip the lateral casing walls snugly. Hence the entire manufacture is simple and expeditious. Moreover, by employing a tubular bolt shank adapted to extend through the usual bolt aperture in the dashboard, we require no drilling of any additional hole in the latter, so that our dash lamp is easily installed by an amateur. Since the slots 4a in the cowl are open at their rear ends, the cowl can readily he slid over the body member and over the projecting parts of the switch bar after the remainder of our lamp has been assembled, and the cowl can likewise be detached by merely sliding it forward horizontally.

hen used as in Fig. 1, the cowl 4-2 limits the issuing rays of light to directions in which this lights the lock-switch and the ammeter dial, and in which additional rays are reflected toward the floor of the car by the metal. front of the panel 1, although shape of the cowl may be varied to change this light distribution.

However, while we have illustrated a dash lamp of our invention as having the cowl fit the beaded edge of an instrument panel and as having a tapered bolt shank portion, we do not wish to be limited to these or other details of the construction and arrangement thus disclosed. Obviously, many changes might be made without departing either from the spirit of our invention or from the appended claims.

Neither do we wish to be limited to the employment of various features of our pre sented invention in combination with one another, as our contact and switching arrangement-for examplemight be employed with a ditlerent lamp-bulb holder construction and vice versa.

e claim as our invention:

1. In .a lamp, a hollow body member formed for supporting a lamp-bulb with the base terminal of the lamp-bulb in a predetermined position, the body member having a perforation; a contact member mounted within the body member and having a contact portion adjacent to the said terminal; means extending through the said perforation for supporting the body member and for securing the contact member to the body member; and switching means movable upon the body member for forcing the said contact portion against the said terminal.

2. A lamp as per claim 1, in combination with an insulator having a portion disposed between the body memberand the contactmember and having another portion disposed between the contact member and the switching means.

3. In a lamp, a hollow body member iormed for supporting a lamp-bulb with the base terminal of the lamp-bulb in a predetermined position, the body member having a perforation; a contact member mounted within the body member and having a contact portion adjacent to the said terminal; means extending through the said perioration for supporting the body member and for securing the contact member to the body member, and a switching member slidable upon the body member and operating in one position to force the contact portion oi the contact member against the said terminal.

4. In a lamp, a body member having portions formed or supporting a lamp-bulb; a resilient contact member having a base portion secured to the body member and a contact portion adjacent to the lamp-bulb; a flexible insulating member disposed on the opposite side of the contact portion of the contact member from the lamp-bulb: and a switching member movable upon the body member and formed so that in one position it will flex the insulating member against the contact member, thereby flexing the contact member into engagement with the lamp-bulb, the resiliency of the contact directed toward the contact member.

6. A lamp construction as per claim 4;, in which the body member has slots in its opposite sides and in which the switching member comprises a bar slidably extending through the said slots and having a hump directed toward the contact member; the said bar having a bent arm at each end disposed outside rthe body member the said bent arms serving as finger pieces for mani Julatin'g the bar.

.. A lamp construction as per claim l, in

eluding a cowl sleeved upon the body member and provided at opposite sides with alined-slots, the body member having slots alining with those in the cowl; the switch ing member comprising a bar extending slidably through the said alined slots in the body member and the cowl and having a hump directed toward the contact member, the said bar having'end portions respectively disposed for engaging opposite sides of the cowl to limit the sliding movement of the bar.

'8. A lamp construction as per claim at, in which the body member has slots inits opposite sides and in which the switching member comprises a bar slidably extending through the said slots and having a hump directed toward the contact member, the parts of'the contact member and of the insulating member adjacent to the said bar being spaced from one side of the body memberto permit the said hump to be disposed laterally between the insulating mem her and the said side of the body member when the bar is in one position.

9. A lamp for attachment to an instru ment :panel and a support, the said panel and support having alined perforations; comprising a lamp-bulb, a hollow body member having its back adjacent to the panel and having a perforation in its back alining with the aforesaid perforations, the body member being provided with means for supporting the lamp-bulb; a resilient con tact member disposed within the body memher and having a portion normally fiexed away fromthe lamp-bulb by the resiliency of the contact member; a switching member movably mounted on the body member: a flexible insulating member having a portion disposed between the said back and the con tact member and having another portion disposed between the contact member and the switching member; a tubular bolt having its shank extending through the said alined perforations and having portions of the said :shank formed for clamping the insulating member and the contact member to the back of the body member; and means extending through the hereof the bolt shank .tom, the said extensions having opposed arcuate edges adapted to engage the base shell of the lamp-bulb; a contact member mounted in the body member and having a portion adapted to be flexed into engagement with the base end of the lamp-bul and switching means movably mounted on the body member and disposed in one position to effect the said flexing of thebody member.

11. A lamp construction as per claim 10, in which the rear side wings are provided with alined perforations and in which the switching member extends slidably through the last named alined perforations.

12. In a lamp, a lamp-bulb having a cylindrical base shell and having lateral pins projecting from-the said shell; and a bulb holder formed of a single piece of sheet metal; the bulb-holder comprising a base having a perforation slidably fitting the said shell, a pair of riser wings, and extension wings extending toward "each other from the upper ends of the riser wings and spaced from each other to permit the said pins to pass between them, the opposed ends of the extension wings being recessed to fit the said base shell, the said perforation having enlargements through which the said pins can pass when the base shell of the lamp-bulb is inserted upwardly through the perforation.

13. A lamp-bulb and holder combination as per claim 11, in which each of the said opposed ends has'an upwardly directed finger disposed for engaging one of the said bulb-base pins to limit the rotational movement of the lamp-bulb with respect to the bulb holder.

14. In a lamp, a lamp-bulb, a body mem' ber formed from a single piece of sheet material and comprising a bottom provided in its forward portion with a perforation slidably fitting the base shell of the lamp-bulb, a back adapted tobe secured to a support, and a forward portion formed to support the'lamp-bulb; a resilient contact member having a base portion secured to the back of the body member and having-a contact portion adjacent to the base end of the lampbulb; and a cowl having a forward portion partially surrounding the lan1p-bulb, the rear portion of the cowl including sides respectively engaging the sides of the body member and webs underhanging the bottom of the latter.

15. A lamp construction as per claim 14 in which the sides of the body member and of the cowl have alined slots, in combination 30 with switching means comprising a bent bar extending slidably through the said alined slots and adapted when in one position to force the contact member against the base of the lamp bulb; the slots in the cowl being open at their rear ends to permit the detach- 1 ing of the cowl from the body member.

Signed at Detroit, Mich, May 6, 1926.

CURRIER LANG. SAMUEL I-I. OROKER. 

